I have led a number of international testing projects, working with ministries, universities and examination boards. Important large-scale research projects I have recently led include a series of test validation projects for the IELTS Speaking test, the British Council’s Aptis Speaking test, Cambridge ESOL Main Suite examinations, and Trinity College London’s GESE and ISE examinations, as well as a major test development project for the national education system in Japan, Taiwan and Uruguay.

My publications include the books, 'The Discourse of the IELTS Speaking Test' (with P. Seedhouse, 2018, CUP) and 'The co-construction of conversation in group oral tests' (2013, Peter Lang). My work also appears in journals such as Language Testing, Language Assessment Quarterly, Modern Language Journal, ELT Journal, and System. Two of my journal papers in Language Testing (2011, 2014) were featured in Fulcher's (2015) Research Timeline article as studies that have significantly advanced our understanding of speaking assessment since 1864.

My research interests include the nature of co-constructed interaction and spoken production in various speaking test formats and delivery modes, the impact of test-taker characteristics on test performance, task design, rating scale development, and the relationship between listening and speaking skills. I also have a keen interest in both qualitative and quantitative research methodologies, especially Conversation Analysis and MFRM analysis, in language testing and applied linguistics research.

I am an HEA Fellow, and the courses I have taught at university settings include: Language testing, Research methodology, and Pragmatics. I am frequently invited to give webinars, research seminars and public lectures to language examination boards and professional bodies. Recent examples of these are a 1-week course (with Dr Nahal Khabbazbashi) for the Association of Language Testers in Europe (ALTE), a public lecture for Macmillan Education’s editors worldwide, and a Facebook live session for the British Council’s MOOC on speaking assessment (with 2,900 live viewers).

I am CRELLA’s PGR Lead coordinator and represent CRELLA at the University’s Research Degrees Committee. I have supervised 13 PhD students to completion. The topics of my current and previous students include: Development/validation of speaking assessment tasks and rating scales, Validation of a locally designed test, Interface between speaking and listening skills, Assessing interactional and pragmatic competence, Candidates’ and raters’ personality traits, Language use in multi-lingual contexts, and Vocabulary acquisition and the development of 4 skills. I would welcome MPhil/PhD proposals in these and other broader areas of language testing and learning.

I am regularly invited to speak at national and international conferences, and I am a regular presenter at conferences such as the Language Testing Research Colloquium (LTRC), the European Association for Language Testing and Assessment (EALTA), the Language Testing Forum (LTF) and the British Council’s New Directions Conference.